Jan. 27, 2010 -- A coffee break after an important meeting or class may be
just the thing your brain needs to digest new information and improve
memory.

A new study suggests that resting while awake aids in memory consolidation
and improves memory recall, much like getting a good night's sleep has been
shown to do.

"Taking a coffee break after class can actually help you retain that
information you just learned," researcher Lila Davachi, PhD, assistant
professor of psychology at the Center for Neural Science at New York
University, says in a news release. "Your brain wants you to tune out other
tasks so you can tune in to what you just learned."

Researchers found that activity between the hippocampus and neocortex, two
key brain areas involved in memory and processing, increased during periods of
wakeful rest after a learning task. This increase in activity was also
associated with improved memory.

"Your brain is working for you when you're resting, so rest is important for
memory and cognitive function," Davachi says. "This is something we don't
appreciate much, especially when today's information technologies keep us
working around the clock."

Resting Revs Up Memory

In the study, published in Neuron, 16 adults were shown pairs of
images followed by periods of wakeful rest. The participants were not told that
their memory of these images would be tested later, but they were told to relax
and think about whatever they wanted during the rest period.

The results showed that there was an increase in brain activity between the
hippocampus and neocortex while the participants were shown the images and
during the rest period.

In addition, those participants who had greater increases in activity
between these two areas while resting and seeing the images performed better on
associative memory tests than those who had weaker responses.

Researchers say many studies in humans as well as rodents have demonstrated
that sleep performs an important role in memory consolidation. But these
results suggest that sleep may not be the only time the day's experiences are
strengthened in memory. Wakeful rest periods, such as coffee breaks or
meditation, may also help improve memory.